Elisabeth Kaylor lives in Trophy Club with her husband of seven years, Brian, a mechanical engineer, and 2-year-old son, David. She is a litigation attorney for the City of Arlington and has been a practicing attorney for eight years. In her free time, she enjoys movies, cooking, travel, reading and messing up crafts from Pinterest.
5:30AM I crawl out of bed and stagger into the living room. I turn on the fireplace so our dachshund, Sunshine, can warm herself on this chilly morning. I also turn on the coffee maker, feed the dogs and pack breakfast and lunch for my husband, Brian, and baby, David. Having everything ready to go the night before is vital to my mental state the next morning, and I’m doing pretty well so far. I sip a cup of hot water with lemon while I check my work email.
5:45AM This New Year, I resolved to take at least a half-hour of “me” time each day. So I do a yoga video and wind up feeling simultaneously sore and relaxed. Then I quickly walk our three dogs around the block and rush to get dressed for work. Thank goodness for dry shampoo! Brian wakes up and staggers into the bathroom. (We do a lot of staggering in the Kaylor household.) I chat with him for a moment, then open the garage and load up the car. I’m still missing one piece of precious cargo: baby David. I get him dressed and let him pack his tiny backpack for Grandma’s house. We are incredibly blessed to have my mom baby-sit David each day, and he is always very excited to see her. Before we get in the car, I pause to hug David for a moment, and he fiddles with my necklace.
6:45AM I drop David off at my mom’s and head to work. My commute is another slice of time alone, and I listen to the Kidd Kraddick show for a while, and then start a new audiobook, Some Kind of Fairy Tale by Graham Joyce. I finished the Serial podcast yesterday and am still going through withdrawal.
7:30AM I arrive at work. I love getting to work early and get a large amount of work done in the morning when there are fewer distractions. My job as a litigation attorney for a large city is always challenging and ever changing, so each day is a new surprise.
11:30AM Mom and David come up to visit for lunch. Did I mention how lucky I am? The three of us have a standing Wednesday lunch date, which is just the best. In warmer weather, we get lunch to go and then let David loose at one of Arlington’s many fine playgrounds, but today it’s cold, so we settle in at a restaurant. David has started pointing out everything blue (“Buuu!”), so that game occupies him for a while. Then he throws a bunch of sugar packets on the floor and eats my soup.
3PM My paralegal and I wrap up a second big project for the week, so we are feeling very productive. I am proud that I used the slower times during the holidays to catch up on more time-consuming items. I call Brian and we chat about a trip we’re planning to Santa Fe, New Mexico.
5PM I head home, continuing to listen to my audiobook. It’s pretty engrossing. I pat myself on the back when I navigate around the horrible Highway 114 traffic near Trophy Club utilizing super-secret shortcuts.
5:30PM Mom arrives at my house with David. David runs around while Mom and I discuss the day for a few minutes.
6PM I had considered ordering Italian from a local restaurant, and when I receive a flyer for the restaurant in the mail, I take it as a sign. I order the chicken penne and caprese salad. While we wait for the food to be delivered, Brian and I talk, and David plays. We eat dinner, and then I prep lunches for the next day.
8PM Brian bathes David while I tidy up the house and start laundry. He wraps David in his dinosaur bathrobe after the bath and releases him into the living room. David roars at me and shows me his dinosaur claws.
8:30PM I read David a book of his choosing. He is really into Richard Scarry’s Cars and Trucks and Things That Go and loves to tell me about what he sees and make sound effects.
8:45PM David cons me into staying up longer and insists on one more cup of milk before bed. Then we finally tuck in his stuffed dragon (dubbed “Mr. Ikea Dragon”) and he goes to sleep. I turn on the Crock-Pot that contains tomorrow’s dinner to cook overnight.
9PM Brian and I get ready for bed and relax together. I finish watching the Sherlock episode I started yesterday on Netflix. Now off to bed.
Diaries are penned by moms (and dads) in the North Texas area. The authors volunteer to share a day of their choosing and are not paid or endorsed by FortWorthChild. Send your diary to editorial@dfwchild.com. All submissions are subject to editing and may be cut for space.
